22 BIRDS THROUGH AN OPERA-GLASS. 



turns or wants to alight you see his tail change 

 from the horizontal to the vertical into a rud- 

 der. He is called keel-tailed on account of it. 



Moreover, he can pick beechnuts, catch cray- 

 fish without getting nipped, and fish for minnows 

 alongside of any ten-year-old. Last October I 

 found him beech-nutting, but he made hard work 

 of it. I suspect the cold snap for there was 

 snow on the ground had stiffened his toes so 

 that he was more awkward than usual. " Poor fel- 

 low, I felt sorry for him, it entailed such danger- 

 ous gymnastics ! But it was amusing to see him 

 walk over the branches, stretch his neck to the 

 point of dislocation, and then make such a deter- 

 mined dive after the nut that he nearly lost his 

 balance, and could only save himself by a desper- 

 ate jerk of the tail. Even when he picked out a 

 nut he had to put it under his claw and drill 

 through the shell, pick-axe style, before he could 

 get a morsel to eat. He evidently thought it 

 rather serious sport, and flew down for some shriv- 

 eled crab-apples as a second course. But an army 

 of robins had possession of the apple-tree and 

 two of them were detailed to drive him off, so he 

 had to finish his breakfast up in the cold beech 

 top. 



A long list of nesting sites might be given, in- 

 cluding martin-houses, poplars, evergreens, holes 

 in stubs, the sides of fish hawk's nests, and 

 church spires where the blackbirds' "clatt'rin"' is 



